It Sucks To Be Betrothed
by dearlybelovedangel
Summary: Kairi, princess of Radiant Garden, has to marry Sora, prince of Destiny Islands. What will become of the two royalties who lived across the worlds from each other? SoraxKairi
1. Goodbyes Are Never Easy

**A/N:** I was just brainstorming one night and this chapter popped up XD I dunno why but it's really hard for me to start a story, I never know how to start it xP Hope you enjoy this short first chapter :]

* * *

"Don't worry about it, Kairi, everything will be fine."

"I know, Cid. I'm excited…really."

"I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too."

"_Kairi?"_

_A small, red-haired girl turned to the older image of herself. She sat up straight and her sad blue eyes faced the green eyes of her mother._

"_Yes, Mother?" Kairi said, hesitantly. The woman smiled warmly and placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. Kairi could see tears forming in her eyes. _

"_You know that we lost all our money because of this project to find the Keyhole. That has all gone to waste now. I just want you to know that we will stay strong no matter what."_

"_Mother, we can solve this! I know we can. We'll just find a way to raise all our money again." In her excitement, she stood up and grabbed her mother's hands. Her mother smiled sadly and shook her head._

"_Kairi, sweetie. There isn't any way to raise enough money to support our kingdom." Kairi's sparkling blue eyes turned sad as she let go of her hands. She sat on the bed again and looked down at her feet. _

_The door opened to reveal a tall man with spiky blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and a nonchalant expression come in. His cold blue eyes softened and his nonchalant expression turned warm. He put an arm around Kairi's mother and cleared his throat._

"_Father, what do you think we should do?" the young sixteen year old girl asked expectantly. At times like these her father always knew what to do. He looked hesitantly at her mother and then back to Kairi. Forcing a smile, he decided to answer._

"_Well, I arranged a meeting with the King of Destiny Islands." _

"_That's great! We'll just ask for help in repairing the kingdom."_

"_Um…I don't think he'll help that easily. You see Kairi…he wants to join our two kingdoms."_

"_Oh, wonderful! Um...but how is he going to do that?" _

"_You're going to be betrothed to his son…Sora."_

"Princess?"

"Huh, what was that Cid? Sorry, I spaced out." She heard a chuckle from the friendly, but strict mechanic who volunteered to take her to Sora's castle. Sora...she wondered what he was like. On her lap, her white cat, Vanilla, stared at her with her bright green eyes. She stroked her softly as she waited for Cid to ask the question again.

"I said, how do you think you'll like the lad?"

"Sora you mean?"

"Well no duh, Sora, who else could I be talking about?" Kairi giggled and tucked a strand of her red hair behind her ear. Cid has been working for her family for many years and was the only one who could talk to her normally like this. She felt safe and comfortable when around him. He was like her second father.

"I didn't see him yet, so I wouldn't know," she blushed. She didn't even know him and she was getting married to him. She thought her father had disapproved of betrothals and whatnot. She felt betrayed…and hurt. More hurt because she thought he understood her.

"What are you expecting?" he asked. He made a turn and Kairi could see the castle in the distance. It even looked huge from far away. No wonder her father wanted to join kingdoms, but she used to have a whole life in front of her.

"Expecting? Well um…a prince? I'm not sure what to expect," she admitted.

"That's good Kairi. Don't have too many expectancies, because fate is a very fickle creature."

"Thanks Cid. Really, you helped me so much."

"I see you as my daughter. Besides if I didn't help you, you'd be a wreck," he joked.

"Hey!" Kairi giggled and looked out the window. She almost gasped at the sight outside. There was a glistening, vast ocean with a vivid sunset. She pressed her face against the window and tried to take in everything at once. She had never been to a beach before. There weren't any in Radiant Garden. All thoughts about leaving home left her mind for a while and she sat in the carriage hoping to watch a full sunset one day.

She sat back and closed her eyes. Maybe the trip here won't be so bad. Maybe Sora would actually turn out pretty okay. _Thinking positive is really hard_, Kairi thought. She sighed and crossed her arms. That still didn't make her heart ache any less. She had to leave behind everyone, except her father who's coming with her in another horse carriage. Her father had to get there earlier to meet with the King of Destiny Islands.

"Okay, Kairi, we're here." The carriage came to an abrupt stop and Kairi nearly flew off her seat.

"Whoops sorry, princess, bad habit," he said, looking back at her and smiling apologetically. He jumped off his seat and went over to hold the door open for her. He held his hand out and gave her an encouraging smile. Holding Vanilla tightly, she took his hand. _Well here goes nothing..._she thought and jumped off.

* * *

"Sora, honey? The king from Radiant Garden is here. Come out and introduce yourself."

A spiky brunette got off from his bed and sighed. Running a hand through his hair, he went out the door to meet this 'King' he heard so much about. The king and his daughter. The one he was supposed to marry.

_Oh gosh, what if she's ugly?_ he thought._ What if I don't like her? _He shook away his thoughts and decided he would think about it later. Folding his hands behind his head, he looked around the hallways. It looked so empty.

_Where's Mom?_

He went down the stairs and stopped abruptly. A woman with gorgeous brown hair tied in a braid with a pink ribbon and with sparkling green eyes was standing beside two men smiled at him. One of the two was his father and Sora didn't recognize the other. _That must be the king. He looks a bit intimidating..._

"Uh…hi," Sora said awkwardly. His father smiled at him while the man nodded. His mother, however, had a strict look on her face.

"Sora, that is no way to greet…"

"It's fine, Aerith." The man with jet black spiky hair, also known as Sora's father the King of Destiny Islands, stood up. He had a scar the shape of an X on the left side of his cheek, glowing blue eyes, and a built body. His strict face turned playful and clapped Sora on the shoulder. Sora chuckled and rubbed the spot where he hit.

"This is my son, Sora. Sora, this is Cloud, the father of the girl you're gonna marry. He's also the amazing King of Radiant Garden," his father said excitedly.

"Oh…"

"Thanks for the introduction, Zack." Sora saw a man with spiky blonde hair stand up. His blue eyes were sharp and his face was emotionless. Suddenly Zack ran over and patted the man on his back and they both started to laugh. Sora raised an eyebrow and his mother giggled.

"They're childhood best friends you know," she said. Sora widened his eyes in surprise and looked back at the two. They seemed so different and yet they were best friends?

"Zack, stop it, your son and wife are here!" Cloud tried to get away from Zack and his armlock.

"Good, then we have an audience for your humiliation!" Zack laughed as Cloud glared at him. Sora chuckled but then coughed to hide it. _How embarrassing_, Sora thought. He crossed his arms and coughed.

"Yeah, I'll just go now," he said as he went up the stairs. Aerith looked on as he disappeared into his room. She decided to break up Zack and Cloud's playful renunion.

"Okay, you two. Now we'll wait for Cloud's lovely daughter and then we'll have the two meet. Oh no, I need to get some tea for you guys! Hold on just a minute." She disappeared into the kitchen as Cloud and Zack sat down at the table.

"Don't you guys have a lot of servants, maids, and butlers?" Cloud asked, questioningly.

"We do, she just likes to make tea," Zack said amusedly. "We may be royalty but just don't act like it."

"Oh," Cloud gave a rare smile. "It's good to see you again Zack. It feels like years since we goofed off like that."

"Haha, I missed your nagging you know."

"I don't nag!"

"What's that? Do I sense denial?" Cloud shook his head laughing and leaned back against the chair.

"How's Claire?" Zack asked his face becoming serious now.

"She's doing well. She offered to stay behind to watch over the kingdom. Kairi's taking it pretty hard though."

"Kairi…you know I have never seen your daughter before. When is she coming?" Zack asked, folding his hands behind his head.

"Hm…Cid should be coming here with her soon."

"Cid!? He still works for you? Wow, I thought he would've gotten fed up with you already," Zack joked. "So, Kairi doesn't want to marry Sora?"

"Cid is a very loyal person and a close friend. As for Kairi…I'm going to have a hard time with her. She's very…stubborn. She also was very upset that she had to leave home. We'll just wait until they meet."

"C'mon people have that feeling all the time. She'll be okay, she's a grown girl."

"Yeah I guess you're right."

"Of course I'm right! Now go upstairs and get some rest. Yuffie!" A slim girl with short black hair and sparkling violet eyes hopped down the steps and smiled brightly. She bowed to Zack and her eyes widened at the sight of Cloud.

"Cloud! Oh my gosh, it's been forever!" she exclaimed and waved happily.

"Nice to see you too, Yuffie," Cloud smiled and waved back. She giggled and skipped towards the two kings.

"Show Cloud to his room please," Zack said. Yuffie nodded and grabbed Cloud's suitcase.

"Come this way, sir!" she said as she ran quickly up the steps.

"Wait…what? Hold on!" Cloud hurried and tried to follow the energetic teen. Zack chuckled and rested his head on his hand. His wife came into the room with a tray.

"I'm back with the tea!" she said. She looked at the table and saw someone missing.

"You're too late, Spiky went up to get some rest."

"Darn it, I'm too slow." Aerith sighed and placed the tray on the table.

"You'll get it, honey," Zack smiled encouragingly. Aerith smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. Suddenly she sat up straight again.

"Hey, shouldn't Kairi be here by now?"

* * *

"Where is this place?" The redheaded princess walked aimlessly around the hallways. She had seen that same portrait over and over again. She hugged her cat closer to her as she quickened her pace.

"I should've just told Cid I couldn't find my room but no, I had to say I got this. Stupid, stupid, stupid…" she muttered. Vanilla meowed but Kairi paid no mind to her. Her feet were starting to get sore so she quickly took off her high heels. She sighed in relief and decided to rest for a while. She looked around and decided to check out the rooms.

"Hm…wonder what's in here," she knew she shouldn't be poking her nose where it doesn't belong but she had to get somewhere. She opened the door slowly and saw it was just a regular room. And a boy's room at that. She bit her lip and closed it. Goodbye to the idea of resting there. She backed away from the room and started to turn around to start searching for another room. Right when she turned, she bumped into something…or someone.

"Oof!" Kairi got knocked to the ground and Vanilla had jumped out of her arms. She looked up to see the person she bumped into. He had spiky brown hair and clear blue eyes that were staring down at her. She quickly stood up but lost her balance and instead fell into his arms. Blushing embarrassingly, she jumped back and straightened out her dress. He had no particular expression on his face while she must've looked like a goofball.

"I'm so sorry!" she apologized. That must've been his room. Her face turned red again as he looked her over.

"And you are?" he asked with a monotone voice.

"K-kairi," she answered. She thought she saw his eyes widen a bit but whatever she saw, it went away quickly. He moved closer towards her.

"Kairi eh?" He reached out and held her chin in his hand. "What a pretty little name for a pretty little girl."

Her face was heating up again but then he started to laugh. Was he fooling with her? She glared at him and moved back from him.

"Why you..." she started to say as she crossed her arms. _Vanilla!_ She remembered her cat had run away when she fell to the ground. She had to look for her in this huge castle, but she'll just get lost again. Maybe that boy would help.

"Calm down, I'm just having some fun," he said after he finished laughing.

"Okay whatever…listen. I think we got off at a bad start." She coughed and held out a hand. "I'm Kairi. And you are?"

He stared at her for a while and then at her hand. Suddenly he started to laugh again.

"What is so funny?" she asked.

"You," he said shaking his head. "And why should I give you my name?"

"I was trying to be nice," she said placing her hands on her hips. What is up with this boy? "Okay whatever, I don't need your name. May you just please help me find my cat? She ran off somewhere and I'm not familiar with this place."

"Hm…me waste time to help you when I could be doing something more interesting. What do you think my answer is?"

"You know what? I'm going to find someone more helpful. Thanks for nothing," she whipped around and started to walk away.

"Now is that any way to treat your future husband?" Sora smirked as she stopped right in her tracks. She turned around to face him and had a hesitant look on her face.

"Sora?"

* * *

**A/N:** Worst cliffhanger ever LOL I suck at them. Sorry that the kings, queens, etc. don't act very much like royalty. This time period is actually present time :D


	2. My Charming Friend, Riku

**A/N:** Sorry I haven't updated in a while D; I guess I'm more of a reader than a writer XD Truth is, I had this document in my files for a while but never had the time to upload it. Thanks to MHplayer749, I finally uploaded Chapter 2, but in the future don't think a simple "How long does it take for you to upload?" will make me upload the next chapter

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, obviously.

* * *

Previously

_"I was trying to be nice," she said placing her hands on her hips. What is up with this boy? "Okay whatever, I don't need your name. May you just please help me find my cat? She ran off somewhere and I'm not familiar with this place."_

_"Hm…me waste time to help you when I could be doing something more interesting. What do you think my answer is?"_

_"You know what? I'm going to find someone more helpful. Thanks for nothing," she whipped around and started to walk away._

_"Now is that any way to treat your future husband?" Sora smirked as she stopped right in her tracks. She turned around to face him and had a hesitant look on her face._

_"Sora?"_

**Chapter 2 My Charming Friend, Riku**

"The one and only," he grinned. She didn't know what to do next. So he spoke instead.

"So you are the one everyone's talking about. Not so amazing at everyone says you are, in my opinion." In reality, he thought she was really pretty, beautiful even. Her red hair gracefully slid a past her shoulders. Her shimmering blue eyes narrowed at his comment and her soft pink lips formed into a pout. Her pink dress was tight in all the right areas. The way she was staring at him was enough to make his heart skip a beat. Sora didn't know why he was being such a jerk. This is always how he acts when nervous. He acts like a jerk.

"Well, you're not a prize either," she scoffed, crossing her arms across her chest. She was also lying through her teeth. His bangs covered part of his alluring blue eyes, which had a mischievous glint in them. He had a built body with tan skin and she didn't know why but she liked it when he smiled, even if it was taunting.

"Aw, well now that hurt." In a second, he swiftly moved right in front of her. "We'll just have to get used to each other now don't we?" He lifted her chin and she narrowed her eyes at him.

"I'll get used to you but it doesn't mean I'll like you." She moved away from him and turned around to go look for Vanilla. "You're kind of a jerk, did you know?" Sora rolled his eyes as if he heard it all before. She turned around and started to walk away.

"You have no idea where you're going, do you?" he said from behind her. Her cheeks flushed red at her failed dramatic exit. She was clueless in this castle, it's only her first day here, but she didn't want to admit that. Sora smirked and stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"Yes…yes I do," she lied. He nodded slowly, amused at her stubborness.

"Really now? Then I guess you don't need my help and guidance. I'm only a person who has lived her all his life." He turned around on his heel and started to walk away. Kairi sighed in defeat and knew she could maybe just let him help just a bit.

"Wait." He stopped, a triumphant look on his face, but it disappeared as he put on a bored look when he turned around.

"Yes?" he asked, pretending to be impatient. He was enjoying this. Sora doesn't usually get company since everyone in the castle is always busy so this was a change. There are also not that many people his own age. Kairi sighed.

"Would you please help me look for my cat?" she asked, blinking her innocent blue eyes. He knew she was just acting cute but he couldn't help feeling weak in the legs. He shook it off and pretended to act like he was thinking.

"Hm…no." The look on Kairi's face was enough to make him laugh. "I'm just kidding, Princess. Now let's go find that cat." He walked past her with his hands behind his head, casually. "Oh and by the way you're terrible at lying." Kairi tried to be angry for him teasing her like that but all that formed was a small smile. She eagerly followed him in pursuit of her lost cat.

* * *

"I wonder where Sora has run off to," Aerith said to Zack.

"Probably with his girl. Don't worry, that boy isn't _that_ trouble prone," the king chuckled. Aerith laughed but she still worried about Sora. He wasn't exactly too keen on marrying at such a young age to someone he didn't even know.

"I wonder what she's like," the queen wondered. She sipped the tea she made thoughtfully. Zack shrugged and thought about her too.

"What if she doesn't like Sora?" her green eyes filled with sadness. Her husband rubbed her back, comfortingly.

"C'mon, our son's a charming guy, she'll come around." Aerith nodded and sighed.

"Charming? Well of course, I'm the father, but even then he can be a bit...rough around the edges as they say," Zack laughed.

"I've always wanted a daughter," Aerith said suddenly.

"After the wedding, you'll have one," he replied. He yawned at stretched. She put her cup of tea down abruptly and smiled.

"Well, I want to meet this Kairi," Aerith said. The king frowned at her.

"Then I'll be all alone here," he said resting a head on her shoulder. She smiled at his childish behavior and knew he would never act that way in front of Cloud or the people in this castle. She stood up, almost making Zack fall out of his seat.

"Let's go, then." She pulled a confused Zack to his feet.

"What? Now? Why?" he asked.

"I guess I'm just impatient. I want to know how she's like. Cloud has said nothing but wonderful things about her and I just want to meet her in person. Now come on, you said you didn't want to be alone. She intertwined her fingers with his and dragged him out of the kitchen to meet the princess of Radiant Garden.

* * *

Cloud sighed as he laid down on his bed. He decided to give his wife a call to let her know he arrived safely. Sitting up and ruffling his blonde hair, he grabbed his cell phone from his bag. After dialing the number, he waited a while until she picked up.

"Hello? Cloud?" a soft voice said on the other line.

"Yeah, it's me, sweetie," he said. Just hearing her voice reassured him that everything was going to be okay.

"Have you settled in yet?" Claire asked.

"Well, I have but I don't know where Kairi is. Probably exploring the castle." He added that last part in quickly so she wouldn't worry.

"Aw, and I was just going to ask to talk to her. Well when you see her tell her to give me a call okay?"

"Of course. She misses you already, you know."

"I miss her too. If you need any help just call me. I know you two aren't that close."

"What?" he chuckled, nervously. "We're…close. She just doesn't show it as much." She laughed softly and mockingly.

"Yes, of course. I'm going to bed now, talk to you soon. Love you."

"I love you too," he whispered as the line went dead. He shut off his phone and fell back on the bed. He rubbed his head, tiredly, as he wondered where Kairi had gone off to. He was determined to bond with his daughter with the time he has with her here. He knows she's not too fond about telling him about her _feelings._ He shuddered thinking about the conversations they would be having. How he wished Claire were here. Cloud had no idea what good parenting was. Whenever he got mad, his first instinct was to yell. Whenever Claire got mad, she would reason things out. He never knew when Kairi was upset, he needs her to tell him or he would never find out. He was also never one to give advice.

Closing his eyes from frustration, he decided to take a nap…and a long one at that.

* * *

"We've been walking for hours and there's still no sign of her anywhere," Kairi complained. It was getting dark and she was worrying about her small cat, lost in an unfamiliar place.

"It's okay, Princess, she'll find you sooner or later," Sora replied.

"_We're_ supposed to be looking for _her_," she said, placing her hands on her hips. "And also, my name is Kairi not Princess."

"We are looking for her. Besides, the guards would've probably seen her. Okay, _Kairi_?" he said, stretching out her name. "Now as we walk around, I might as well show you where everything is." She bit her lip in frustration but decided to listen for this part.

He pointed to the door to the right. "That one is the kitchen. Don't walk in randomly, they're very strict about that." As they walked forward a bit more, the brunet pointed to another door. "That's the main room, where they hold all the meetings and stuff. Very boring, I don't suggest you go there unless invited."

"And here is the door to outside. Where the garden is. Riku and I spar there all the time." Kairi was about to say something but she was pulled by him close to the wall.

"Hey, wait. I think I see her." He grabbed her arm and brought her to the edge of the hallway corner. "There, is that your cat?"

Kairi peeked a bit at where Sora was pointing. It was her cat and she was laying in the middle of the hallway, on her side.

"She doesn't look frightened at all," Kairi mumbled. And here she was, worrying about her.

"See, what did I tell you? Now, I don't think you should approach directly because you might scare her off…so--HEY!"

Kairi had ignored him and ran past him toward her cat. She stopped a few feet away as Vanilla was in an about-to-run away stance. Sora sighed and decided to see what would happen.

"Vanilla…" she cooed. "It's me, Kairi." The cat's eyes were still widened. Kairi's impatience got the best of her and as she lunged forward to get her cat, Vanilla sprinted away. Kairi instead fell to the floor, tearing a part of her dress. Pouting in defeat, she glared after her running cat.

"Kairi…" Sora said, shaking his head. He laughed for a moment before reaching out a hand to help her (which she wacked away in a very unprincesslike manner.) "Ha man, you should've seen the look on your face."

"Run after her!" she yelled. She quickly picked herself up and quickly ran after the white animal. Sora stood there in shock and amusement mixed together. He then realized they were chasing her cat and decided to catch up to her.

"You know that wasn't a way a princess should act," he teased. She decided to ignore him on that as the cat came into view.

As they were both inching closer to Vanilla, they both suddenly collided with someone and ended up on their butts. Kairi rubbed her head as she looked up, blushing immensely. Sora stood up quickly and brushed off the dirt on his pants. Standing before them was the king himself, raising an eyebrow at them. Kairi followed after Sora and stood up quickly, trying to tidy up.

"Er, hey Dad," Sora said, giving him a cheesy smile. Zack tried hard not to smile but he did anyway. He nodded at Kairi as she returned the gesture.

"Well, I see you two are bonding…" he said turning over to his wife who had a familiar white cat in her arms. "Even if it was a wild goose chase." Kairi and Sora pretended to act like they were getting along as they both nodded at each other, stiffly.

"I'm guessing this is yours, Kairi?" the woman smiled at her softly. Kairi nodded, embarrassingly and graciously took the cat from her.

"Thank you," Kairi curtsied.

"Not at all. I'm Queen Aerith Gainsborough, but you can just call me Aerith. Pleased to see you Princess Kairi. How are you liking it here so far?" Kairi liked her. She had a warm presence within her and she was being very nice…like a motherly figure.

"Pleased to meet you as well," Kairi returned the smile. "It's a really nice castle, much warmer than the one back at my home."

"Oh, well can't have you cold now can we?" the older woman said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sure your father has told you all about me," Zack said cockily. Kairi giggled a bit and nodded.

"Yes, he told me how he used to always lose to you in sparring battles," she said. The king chuckled loudly and shook his head.

"Your father had potential, I'll give him that. Well, I'm sure you're tired and need some rest, Princess."

"Um, it's just Kairi." She was never fond of her title.

"Okay then just Kairi," Zack smiled fondly. "Sora, lead her to her room please as the 'gentleman' you are." He gave Sora a rough pat on the back as he led his wife to their own room.

"Sorry, they can be a little embarrassing," he mumbled. She giggled and shook her head.

"I like them," she said. "Well I guess I'm going to head to the garden now."

"I thought you said you were tired," he said, raising an eyebrow. She walked quickly to the door that led to the garden.

"I _was_ tired but now I just want to explore. Now are you coming or not?" She put her hands on the handles but turned to Sora. Sora's shoulders slumped. He could've just went to his room and taken a long nap, but he instead the young prince followed the princess to the door.

"Need some help?" he asked, smirking as he helped open one of the doors for her. She was about to say that she could've done it herself but she didn't. She just mumbled a thank you and went through the doors. The princess gasped at the sight. The flowers covering the bushes were all varieties of colors and the statues of important figures of history were huge. Basically, the garden was very big.

"Whoa, this is your garden?" She moved forward and smelled some of the flowers. They smell as good as they look.

"Yeah, there's also a beach down farther."

"Wow," was all she said. She was looking at the flowers but Sora wasn't really paying attention to them. His eyes were on her. He then realized this might've been a bit creepy and quickly looked away in embarrassment.

"My grandma used to be a gardener," she said, speaking up. "We used to plant flowers all the time…that is before she passed away."

Sora had no words to say. He was a bit surprised she told him that, they had barely met. He was just about to say something when a small rock hit his head.

"Ow! What the?" he spun around to see a silver haired male waving to him. _Riku…_Sora rolled his eyes and hoped he wouldn't come over. Of course, the opposite of what he wanted came true. Riku hopped over the bushes and came over to them. Kairi stood up and looked towards the male who was coming closer.

"Whoa, and who might this be?" Riku said gesturing towards Kairi. Sora narrowed his eyes, subconsciously at Riku. Sure, Sora could be a flirt when he wanted but Riku was the biggest flirt of all. Sometimes, Sora got really aggravated.

"This is Kairi," Sora said. Kairi took out a hand but instead of shaking it, Riku took the hand and kissed it. Kairi blushed a bit before pulling her hand back. Psh, so cliché, Sora said to himself, but he really hoped she wasn't falling for it.

"I'm Riku, Sora's best friend," he said, bowing.

"Riku's a year older than us," Sora said. "He works as

"Hey Kairi, why don't we hang out sometime? You know down by the beach?" he asked. Kairi didn't want to be rude and she did want to see the beach.

"When?" she questioned.

"How about tomorrow? I'll come pick you up," he said smiling. She smiled back just to be polite and nodded and he went away.

"You like him?" he asked bluntly.

"What? I just met him," Kairi said.

"I was just asking," he said. "Calm down." He plopped down on the grass and played with some of the flowers his mom had planted. Kairi shook her head at his rudeness but decided to let it slip for now.

"Well…he's friendly I'll give him that," she said as she sat down next to him.

"Too friendly if you ask me," he mumbled. She giggled at him as she looked up at the sky. It was getting late now.

"You can come too. I kind of don't feel safe with him alone," she said.

"Yeah sure, you can never trust Riku," he teased.

"I thought he was your best friend," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not one to put labels," Sora said rolling his eyes. Kairi smiled to herself as she fondled the flowers again. It was very calming, being here in the garden. Even with Sora's bad mood, she still found peace.

"I think it's time for us to go back," Sora said suddenly. He got up and grabbed her hand to pull her up. She blushed at the contact but didn't say anything. He guided her through the hallways. When they got to her room, he opened the door for her.

"Thank you," Kairi blurted out. Her cheeks were tinted with a light shade of pink. "For showing me the garden, and everything else." Sora wasn't used to being thanked so he just nodded awkwardly.

"Well goodnight." Kairi was about to close the door but Sora blocked it with his foot and in a swift movement, he kissed her on the cheek.

"Sleep tight," he gave her a heart stopping smile and walked down the hallway with his hands behind his head as if nothing happened. Kairi stood there with her hand to her cheek and bright blue eyes widened. Her cheeks flushed as her lips curved into a smile.

"Good night, Sora," and with that she shut the door slowly and got ready for bed.

* * *

**A/N:** Gah they're supposed to not like each other yet but I couldn't resist that ending XD They just have the attraction ;] Yes I know Sora and Kairi are betrothed and whatever but Riku is just that type of guy XD You guys can give me some ideas. Please R&R x3 it encourages me :]


	3. Princessnapped

**A/N**: Haaa you guys must be thinking 'This story actually has some sort of plot line?' And the answer isss maybe. I'm actually just making things up as I go along XDD I finally added one of my favorite characters in ;P Any suggestions would help. Hope you guys like :D Oh and I will be updating my other story soon. I'm just really busy with school lately D:

* * *

Kairi opened her blue azure eyes and looked around. Jumping up she looked around frantically.

"Where am I?" she asked, dazed. The princess ran a hand through her messy red hair and stood up, stumbling a bit. Looking out the window, she saw a silver haired male waving at her from below. _Oh right…I'm not at home anymore. _She waved back and then smiled, embarrassingly, seeing that she was still in her nightdress.

Suddenly, someone knocked on her door. Attempting to make her hair presentable she opened the door slightly to see who was on the other side.

"Dad? Um…good morning!" Kairi said. Clapsing her hands behind her back she moved over so he could come in.

"Er…good morning, Kairi. I see you've made yourself comfortable," Cloud said, looking around the room. She blushed seeing what a mess she made. She was never a good organizer.

"I was going to clean it up later today," Kairi said quickly.

"Right," her father said giving a small smirk. "So, what are you planning to do today?"

"Oh, well Sora's friend, Riku, had asked to take me for a walk on the beach today," the redhead said, quietly towards the end.

"What?" Cloud turned around to face her and raised and eyebrow. "Riku?"

"Sora's going too," she added. "They're just showing me around. You know, to get me used to this place." Cloud thought for a moment before nodding in approval.

"I guess that is understandable. Alright, have fun, but be careful. You're not used to these surroundings and I wouldn't want you getting lost."

"Of course, Dad. Now I need to get changed. See you at dinner!" She rushed to her closet and started looking through her dresses. The King looked at his rushing daughter, smiled to himself, and left the room.

"What to wear, what to wear," the princess mumbled, looking through all her dresses. They were either too fancy or too sparkly. Blowing a strand of hair away from her face, she took out the last dress and sighed in defeat. The door knocked again.

"Ugh, Dad, what now…" she opened the door and gasped in surprise. Sora was standing at the doorway, with flowers in his hand. He looked at her with a bored expression his face.

"Sora…are those for me?" she said looking at the daisies in his hand.

"No they're for your cat," he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. He handed it to her abruptly, turning the other way so she wouldn't see his red face.

"They're beautiful, thank you," she blushed. Even though he practically shoved it in her face, she was flattered.

"Whatever, my mom made me give them to you. Now are you ready or not?" he asked.

"Oh…well I don't really know what to wear," Kairi admitted. Sora raised an eyebrow and shook his head.

"Girls…" he scoffed.

"Hey! It's really hard you know," she said, turning around and walking into her room with Sora following behind. The auburn haired beauty placed the flowers on her bedside and went over to her closet again.

"Sounds to me like you're trying to impress someone," the brunet mumbled. Kairi stopped searching and turned to face him. At first she thought he was talking about himself but then she started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Sora glared.

"You think I'm trying to impress Riku? Sora that's not it at all. It's just that I'm not that used to this weather so all the dresses I have are suited more for Radiant Garden. I mean they're either made for dinner parties and dances, or they're too thick and hot for the hot weather of Destiny Islands."

Kairi then smirked and nudged him with her elbow. "Were you jealous?" she teased.

"As if. I just don't like it when girls try to act all pretty for guys. Just a waste of time," he said bluntly.

"Oh…guess then you must like girls who don't try at all," she said crossing her arms.

"No, I didn't mean it that way. I mean like you try but don't overdo it you know? Okay whatever, just pick a dress. Riku's waiting."

"I told you I don't have one." Sora ran a hand through his spiky locks and gestured with his hand to follow him. The confused redhead followed him out of the room.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"Somewhere," he mumbled. Kairi didn't question anymore and just followed quietly. He went up the stairs and took out the keys to a big room. Opening the door he led her inside. It was huge with dresses hung up on all of the white colored walls. There were several rooms and many tables with sowing machines and different kinds of fabric.

"Tifa? I have a guest," he called out. From inside one of the rooms came out a beautiful tall, black haired, woman. Her warm brown eyes softened at the sight of Kairi.

"Welcome. I'm guessing you're Princess Kairi," she said, bowing to her.

"Oh you don't have to do that. And it's just Kairi," she said quickly at the end.

"Ah, okay then," the woman said. "I'm Tifa. I make dresses here in the castle. I'm guessing you need one?"

"Yeah, she needs one. Casual, nothing too fancy," Sora explained.

"I have just the one. Hold on for a minute." She disappeared into one of the rooms and came back with a light turquoise colored, spaghetti strapped, dress. Kairi touched the smooth textures of the dress and smiled.

"It's perfect. Thank you so much," she said, gladly taking the dress.

"Of course. Anything for Sora's future wife, " Tifa said, winking at the younger girl.

"Um…yeah," Kairi said blushing. She wondered how many times she was going to hear that. Only the people closest to the two knew so she wondered what Tifa's relation to Sora was.

"You can change in that room right there," the woman said pointing to the room on her right. The princess nodded and went in. When Kairi had went inside, Tifa turned around to face Sora. She went over to him and sat at one of the tables.

"So, how are you two getting along?" she said, smiling playfully.

"Great," Sora responded, pretending to look out the window.

"Come on, you need to give me more than that to your godmother," she whined. Sora rolled his eyes and faced her.

"Well, what else is there to say? She's just…Kairi."

"And what is 'just Kairi'?" she said resting her chin on her hands.

"Just that. She's just a princess who came over here from Radiant Garden to get married to me, which I know she doesn't want, so her kingdom will be saved. Yada, yada, yada..."

"Fine," Tifa said, defeated. "You will tell me more after this week though."

"Yeah, yeah," Sora said smiling at her.

"You better," she smirked, ruffling his hair. He playfully shoved her arm and ran a hand through his hair. Just then, the door opened and Kairi came out in the dress. Tifa looked to see Sora's expression and smiled as his eyes widened in surprise.

"So…how is it?" Kairi asked embarrassingly.

"It's beautiful," Tifa clapped her hands together and nodded while looking her over. "It fits your curves perfectly."

"I have curves?" Kairi said looking down at herself. Sora's face turned red as Tifa chuckled and nodded. "It doesn't match my hair though…everything clashes badly with red."

"Not _your_ hair," Tifa said brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. Kairi beamed at Tifa, who she was beginning to grow fond of.

"Okay, yeah you look great, now come on, Riku must've been waiting for hours." Sora went over, mumbled a thanks to Tifa, grabbed Kairi by the arm, and pulled her out.

"She was nice," Kairi said.

"Yeah, she is. She's the best," Sora replied. Kairi guessed that he wasn't used to giving compliments as she could barely hear the last part. They both walked in silence through the long hallways. Every time Kairi was going to open her mouth to say something, she would decide against it. Sora looked lost in his thoughts. His mind flashed back to when Riku had called Sora downstairs to train late at night.

"_Hey, she's pretty cute isn't she?" the silver haired male said, nudging the brunet beside him with his elbow. "What would I do to taste those lips of hers…"_

"_Riku…I thought you dragged me out here to practice. If this is what you're going to be doing for the next half hour I'm out of here." He pushed Riku away and started to walk back to the castle. The older male chased after him and stopped him in his tracks._

"_Dude, what's wrong with you? Every time I mention her you would get all stiff and stuff," he said. Sora really didn't want to tell him that Kairi was his fiancé. He didn't know how he would take it. He would also probably make fun of him until they get married. And he seemed fond of her. Besides, why would he care if Riku flirted with her? He was going to marry her anyway so it made no difference._

"_I…don't know," Sora mumbled. Riku raised his eyebrow at him._

"_Well there's got to be something."_

"_No there isn't."_

"_Can you at least tell me what she's here for? I never saw her here around before and I doubt she's a maid by the way she dresses."_

"_She…" Sora racked his head for an excuse for why she was here._

"_What? Spit it out."_

"_She's my fiancé."_

"Sora? Soraaaa," Kairi drawled out. Sora shook his head and looked at her.

"What?" he snapped. She was a bit taken aback but she pointed to the door. They were at the door to the garden already. "Oh, right. Sorry." He opened the door and they both went through. Riku was sitting at the bench, with an annoyed look on his face.

"There you two are," he said, getting up. "What were you guys doing that had to take this long?" He added a wink at the end. Kairi reddened up while Sora just rolled his eyes. He had wondered when he would start making jokes.

"We were at Tifa's helping Kairi find some new clothes," he explained, monotone. The redheaded princess looked between the two of them and could feel some tension.

"Wow, Tifa did a good job. You look great," Riku complimented.

"Thank you," she said, glancing at Sora who didn't show any sign of movement. "Um, did something happen between you two?"

"No," the prince said quickly as he walked away from the two of them. Riku shook his head and gestured with his hand to Kairi, as if saying to follow him.

"Sora, if it was something I did, I'm sorry," Kairi said.

"Kairi, you didn't do anything," he said, running a hand through his hair. The older boy sighed and put a hand on Sora's shoulder.

"Look, Sora, can I talk to you for a minute? If it's alright with you, Kairi," he said.

"Of course," Kairi said. Riku looked at the prince next. Sora nodded in reply and they both went away behind the trees. Little did they know that someone was watching their every move, and that they had just left the princess unguarded.

"Okay if I did anything to offend you, I'm sorry for saying those things. I was just goofing around. I wasn't thinking."

"No, you weren't."

"What can I do to make it up to you?"

"Nothing, I'm not even mad."

"Right."

"Riku…you like her don't you?" Riku was silent for a minute before shaking his head.

"She's gorgeous, I have to admit that, but right after I found out that you both were supposed to get married, I just dropped any attraction I had towards her."

"I don't even want to marry her. This is all going way too fast."

"It will work out." He patted his friend on the back.

"No it won't. I want to fall in the love the right way. Not by force." Sora walked off ahead of his friend. Riku followed behind and shook his head.

"Who knows. Maybe you two will fall in love the right way. When's the wedding?" he asked.

"I think two months from now."

"That's plenty of time!"

"No it isn't. It may seem so but it's not."

Kairi was still standing there, waiting for their 'talk' to end already. She was getting a bit impatient. Crossing her arms, she decided to look for them. What could they be talking about anyway?

"Sora? Riku?" she called out. Suddenly, two hands came out and grabbed her from behind. She tried to scream but a hand covered her mouth.

"What do we have here? Princess of Radiant Garden, hm?" the man said, breathing down on her neck. The princess elbowed him hard on the stomach and tried to run when he let go for a second but her attempt failed when he pulled her back.

"That was a smart move," he grunted.

"What do you want from me?" she struggled. He only held her tighter. The man stroked her hair and chuckled amusedly.

"I bet your daddy would pay a lot of money for you," he whispered in her ear. She tried not to cry and kept a brave face on.

"There are hundreds of guards surrounded the place. I don't think you'll get very far," she snapped.

"I have a lot of men with me. We will escape with you. And maybe have some fun too if you know what I mean," he said, seductively. Kairi gasped and tried kicking backwards, hoping to kick his sensitive area, but he was too quick and in a second he put a rag to her nose and she fell into a deep sleep. The stranger put her over on his shoulder and with a quick look around he walked away from the beach.

* * *

Sora and Riku had circled the area where Kairi was multiple times but she was nowhere to be found. They had even split up and looked but she was still missing.

"Where did she go?" Sora said, obviously annoyed. Riku had a bit of worry in his eyes but shook off the feeling. _She's fine. She has to be. _

"Maybe she went to look for us but gave up and went back in the castle," Riku suggested.

"I guess so. We didn't take that long did we?"

"For her, maybe. Let's go check inside," Riku ran off ahead of Sora into the castle. Sora narrowed his eyes and looked back at the beach. Something was off. Kairi wouldn't just give up looking for them and go back inside. He decided to keep looking for her at the beach.

Calling out her name while running down the beach was started to wear him off. _Maybe she did go back inside, _he frustrated brunet angrily kicked the water for leaving her alone. Suddenly he saw a ship far away.

"A ship? Leaving the port at this time?" he muttered to himself, suspiciously. He quickly ran to his stable and opened the gate. Running inside he jumped on his horse,, and rode off to the port. The horse soon got tired after a while, so Sora had asked a fisherman to hold on to her until he came back.

"Hey, you men over there!" he called out. Some guys were resting on a ship that looked like it was pretty fast, faster than the one that was already far away and the one that might have Kairi.

"What is it, boy?" one of them answered, half asleep. He didn't realize he was talking to the prince of Destiny Islands.

"I need you to help me catch that ship out in the waters."

"Now why would we help a boy like you?" he mumbled, sitting up. He turned to take a good look at who he was talking to and widened his eyes. Sora ignored his rudeness and climbed onto the ship.

"Your majesty! Why are you out so late?"

"To catch that ship, now hurry!" Sora said quickly. The men all stood up and scrambled around to get the ship ready to leave the port. They moved pretty quickly but they still couldn't catch up. They were just going to have to follow them. The brunet wasn't even sure if Kairi was on that ship. All he knew was that she wasn't in the castle.

* * *

Kairi pulled her knees up to her chest and sighed. She had been locked in this room for hours. Nobody had even come in to check if she was still here. The dress Tifa gave her was all dirty and her red hair was a mess. Her blue eyes was starting to close when the door suddenly snapped open. It was the man that had kidnapped her. He had long silver hair that reached to his knees. His golden eyes looked down on her and his thin lips twisted upward in a smile.

"Why don't we get you cleaned up, Princess?" he said inching towards her. Kairi moved back and glared at him.

"Don't. Touch. Me," she growled. She was in a pissed off mood and it didn't help she kept thinking she was never going to see her family again. She wasn't even thinking about how dangerous this man could be.

"My, my aren't we a bit grumpy. I think I can change that," he smirked, lifting her chin up so her face was close to his. She turned her head and crossed her arms.

"Hmph, no one is going to come rescue you just so you know. If that was where your confidence is coming from," he said. He left the room and locked it. Kairi was left just as she was a few moments before. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She wanted to cry but no tears came. It has been a really long time since she cried. Kairi thought it was better if you just leave your feelings hidden. Letting it out would just make you weak and Kairi hated feeling weak. People already doubted her just because she was a princess and she vowed to be stronger.

After what seemed like forever, the door opened again. This time it was a blonde haired boy with sharp blue eyes and pale skin. He resembled a bit like Sora but his eyes were more cold and threatening. Kairi managed to stand up and looked at him curiously.

"Who are you?" she asked. He didn't answer for a moment which made Kairi think that he hadn't heard her. She was about to ask again when his mouth opened a bit.

"I'm…nobody." That was all he said as he walked forward and grabbed her wrist. His cold was as touch as his eyes and he dragged her out of the dark room. She was glad for some freedom but what she wasn't so grateful about was all the people outside looking at her. That silver haired man who kidnapped her was one of them. He smiled deviously as well as all the men behind him.

Kairi had to admit she was a bit scared but she put on an emotionless mask and let the boy take her to them.

"When are you going to let me go?" she whispered to him. The blonde haired boy let go of her wrist immediately but that wasn't what Kairi meant.

"I meant off this ship," she muttered. The boy either didn't hear her or just didn't feel like answering.

"Hello, Princess." The, leader she supposed, said to her.

"I want you let me go."

"As you can see, Kairi, you have nowhere to escape. We are near our hideout now so you might as well get comfortable." The redhead didn't say anything but just nodded slowly. Kairi had to find a way to escape. She was hoping someone was out looking for her. She was hoping someone would care. Her dad would. She hoped that the King and Queen of Destiny Islands would. And…she hoped Sora would. Or would he be glad she was taken away? This thought bothered her greatly for some reason. The crew members all went back to their duties while Kairi just stood in the middle of the deck not knowing what to do. She was under everybody's watch so she couldn't do much anyway. She then spotted the boy who took her out of the room. He seemed to be lost in thought as he looked out towards the ocean. Walking up to him, she tapped him nervously on his shoulder. He turned his head to her slowly with an emotionless gaze.

"Hey, I'm Kairi in case you didn't know yet. Not that I'm saying that you should know me because that would be pretty conceited, it's just that you guys kidnapped me so I thought you would all know who I am by now and…what's your name?" she quickly asked after she realized she was rambling. Something about him just made her nervous. His eyes gleamed of amusement for a bit as he turned all the way around.

"Roxas." Kairi felt like she wanted to know a lot more about him but he seemed like the kind of person who didn't talk much.

"Nice to meet you, Roxas," she said, curtsying. Roxas looked at her curiously and bowed a bit before turning back to the ocean. Kairi wanted to talk to someone really badly. She was lonely. With no one to turn to and with no one to tell her it was going to be okay.

"What are you doing on this ship, Roxas?" she asked. He seemed like he didn't want to answer so Kairi just dropped it. She stood next to him and looked at the ocean too. The skies were already dark and the stars had come out. It was a beautiful night, despite the fact that she was kidnapped by a strange man and brought here on this mysterious ship and being taken away from her home. This thought just made her mood sad again. Roxas seemed to notice and reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. She was a bit shocked at the contact and turned to him curiously.

"It's going to be okay," he said to her. Kairi was surprised that he actually said more than one word to her and nodded in response.

"I hope so," she added afterwards.

"I work for Sephiroth. That's why I'm here," he said, answering her question. _So Sephiroth is his name, _she thought to herself_. Why did that name seem familiar?_

"Why do you work for him?" she asked. She hoped she wasn't being rude in asking all these questions.

"I…had nowhere else to go," he muttered. The thing is that Roxas thought he was helping her by not telling. She was in danger if they make it and he hoped that she would find a way to escape. Who knew what goes on in Sephiroth's head? The redhead decided to drop the questions for now. He seemed really interesting and she wanted to know more, but for now they both just enjoyed the silent night together.

* * *

Sora was still staring out into the ocean even though the rest of the crew was already asleep except for the Captain.

"You never told me why you were chasing after that ship, your Majesty," the Captain said to the prince.

"I think that ship kidnapped the princess," he replied, his voice monotone.

"Oh no, why aren't there more men with you? You surely can't take them on alone."

"They don't know. I'm sure they know by now but I just panicked. I can and I will."

"Okay fine, but if you need any backup I'm here for you, boy." Sora looked at the man with a surprised look.

"Thanks," Sora said gratefully. "For everything."

"Anytime, son." The prince finally laid down and closed his eyes, drifting off into slumber.

* * *

**A/N: **How was that? :DD YESH Roxas makes an appearance! No this isn't a Roxiri fanfic, though I might write one later in the future :] This is going pretty fast for only Chapter Three but I don't want to make this fic too long. Please R&R ^^


	4. Rescued

**A/N:** I'm not very good at organzing my stories so please tell me if I have errors and whatnot. For my next story, I should plan things out first xD Oh and btw I had no idea ***SPOILER FOR FF13*** Claire was Lightning's real name in FFXIII. I started this story before I knew so now I know and yup Lightning's Kairi's mom :-D Is that strange? Haha I made her so nice. Better toughen her up ;P This is a pretty good coincedence haha CloudxLightning. Yeah so now that I know that it is Lightning, forget that I said green eyes in the first chapter. Of course I doubt any of you caught that and I just told you. Anwayy enjoy.

* * *

Previously

_You never told me why you were chasing after that ship, your Majesty," the Captain said to the prince. _

_"I think that ship kidnapped the princess," he replied, his voice monotone._

_"Oh no, why aren't there more men with you? You surely can't take them on alone."_

_"They don't know. I'm sure they know by now but I just panicked. I can and I will."_

_"Okay fine, but if you need any backup I'm here for you, boy." Sora looked at the man with a surprised look._

_"Thanks," Sora said gratefully. "For everything."_

_"Anytime, son."_

* * *

**Chapter 4- Rescued**

"Son, hey Majesty, wake up!" The prince was shook roughly as he awoke with a start.

"Wha? Who's there?" Sora mumbled, dazed. He sat up and rubbed his eyes tiredly. He hadn't been getting much sleep lately.

"We landed but we can't find the princess," the Captain said. "We think their hideout might be up ahead, past the forest."

"What?" Sora stood up and wore his jacket, hastily. He looked at the forest and saw that it was nothing easy to get past by. He would need the best and skilled men. Grabbing his sword, he got off the ship. The Captain followed quickly behind but Sora stopped him.

"No, you stay here and watch the ship. I'll only bring a few crewmen with me. If I don't come back, take the ship and go," Sora commanded.

"Sir, I…"

"Follow the orders," he said strictly. The elder nodded and walked slowly back to the ship. Sora knew he couldn't drag more people into the danger. He picked out some of the crew members and they followed him into the forest up ahead.

Kairi was sitting on the cold floor, tied up and nervous. Roxas was sitting right next to her in a chair but he didn't tell her what they were going to do which didn't exactly make her feel any better.

"Can you at least tell me if I'm in danger or not?" Kairi pleaded. Roxas looked at her with his mysterious blue eyes. She couldn't read them at all so she gave up.

"They're…not going to do anything to you. Yet." Kairi looked at Roxas and frowned.

"I guess I'll just have to wait then."

"Don't worry. I'll…" Roxas started but then trailed off as the door suddenly slammed open and Sephiroth walked in.

"You, boy, get out!" he commanded, pointing at Roxas. The blonde haired boy gave Kairi one last look before slowly going outside. Kairi felt a bit hurt that he left her like that, but she didn't show it in her face.

"Now, why don't we give a little call to your father?" the man said, smiling creepily. The redhead glared at him and looked away.

"What, you don't want that?" he asked.

"Please, leave my father out of this and just let me go! I'll give you the money if that's what you want," she begged. Her dad already had too much on his hands and he didn't need this. She didn't want to be a disappointment again.

"Money? I supposed that was the first reason why we kidnapped you, but I also have a thing to settle with your father."

"Thing? What thing?" she asked.

"Hm, well you'll just have to find out."

* * *

"Where could they possibly have gone!" Cloud yelled at no one in particular. Zack looked at him sadly. Aerith hasn't stopped crying since they all found out their children were gone. Riku looked down at his hands and tightened them. It was all his fault. He decided to leave Kairi alone.

"I am the worst possible father. I don't deserve being one," the king sat down on one of the chairs and buried his face in his hands.

"Cloud, don't say that! You're a great father. I'm sure they're not even in any danger," Zack assured him.

"That doesn't make me feel any better if they're off 'doing stuff' and not telling us!" the blonde man said scratching his head in frustration.

"No they're not doing anything," Riku spoke up. "Kairi disappeared so we went to find her but Sora stayed behind while I went in the castle to look for her. That's when they both disappeared. I'm going to go look for them," he said, standing up. Zack put a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down.

"No, we won't lose another child," he said strictly.

"I'm not a child anymore!" Riku said. "We can't just sit here and do nothing!"

"We're not doing nothing, Riku. We have all our men looking for them. Now calm yourself," Zack said calmly, even though he felt like punching a wall.

"That's not enough," the silver haired male grunted. They all sat in silence for a moment when the phone rang. Zack went over to pick it up.

"Hello?" he said into the phone. Everybody else sat in silence. "What? Who is this?"

"Zack, what is it?"

"Cloud, it's for you. They have Kairi," Zack said, looking down while handing the phone to Cloud. The king took it quickly and spoke into the phone.

"You! Give me back my daughter right now or we will do everything in our power to destroy you!"

"Ah, Cloud, is that any way to treat your old friend?" Cloud froze at the sound of the voice on the other line. His insides turned cold and his blue eyes flashed and narrowed.

"Sephiroth! What do you want from me?"

"I want to settle things. If you don't meet me at this location, your daughter will be severely punished." The line went dead as Cloud slammed the phone onto the ground. It immediately smashed into pieces. Cloud shook his head and turned to Zack.

"Sorry, I lost my temper. I'll buy you a new one," he mumbled.

"No, it's okay. You just need some rest," Zack said to him, sympathetically, patting his back.

"Rest? My daughter's being held captive. I'm going to save her, now," he growled. He brushed past Zack and went out the room. Riku shot up again and followed Cloud.

"I'm going too," the younger boy stated.

"No you're not," was all he got for a reply.

"Yes, I am. If I don't go, I'll never forgive myself!" Riku yelled. Cloud stopped for a minute. "Sora's my best friend, sir, and I'm the one who left Kairi alone."

"You…" Riku looked at him pleadingly. "Can come, but I will not slow down for you."

"Of course sir! Thank you!" he bowed several times before rushing off to get his weapons. Cloud smirked at the boy's behavior. Reminding a lot of himself when he was younger. When things were a lot more simple.

* * *

They both rode out into the forest on their horses searching for possible routes.

"Alright, off to the dock!" Cloud rode off quickly. It was hard to catch up with a distressed father. They both rode the ships as Riku was sharpening his wooden knife.

"That's your weapon?" Cloud asked.

"Yeah, I work as blacksmith. Sort of. I'm still an apprentice so they don't let me work with the more dangerous items. I'm ready though," Riku said. Cloud chuckled at his conceitedness. Much like himself back in the days. Thought he could handle anything and was caught off guard when things didn't go his way.

"Good, we're going to need some skill."

"Who...who's Sephiroth?" Riku asked. Cloud's bright blue eyes darkened as he looked away and onto the ocean. Riku felt a bit regretful for asking but he needed to know. Cloud then looked back at him and leaned forward. He whispered so the crew wouldn't hear. This wasn't exactly a story you tell over the campfire.

"I trust you enough to tell you this story so here it is. Sephiroth is a dangerous murderer. He will stop at nothing to kill his desired target. Only sometimes he will give mercy but that's rarely. That's why I'm nervous about Kairi being in his hands. I know Sora went to rescue her but I doubt he'll win against Sephiroth. He...wasn't always like that though," his voice drifted off. Riku's eyes sparked interest as he nodded for him to continue.

"He...was going to marry Claire, my wife. They were betrothed and everything was fine. And...I was going to be his best man. I...I don't remember those days very clearly but then suddenly he snapped. Like he went insane. I don't even know how that happened. He was smart, cunning, and a very skilled soldier and all of a sudden all that was taken away from him. He burned down my entire village. Zack defeated him all those years ago and...I took care of Claire. She was traumatized but I helped her through it. A few years later we fell in love and got married and had our beautiful baby daughter. People told us that Sephiroth had died but I always had a feeling in my gut that he was still alive. Now my daughter's in danger because of me."

Riku didn't really know how to respond in moments like these. He would always light up the mood but if he did that know, Cloud would probably strangle him.

"Cloud...look it wasn't your fault Kairi was kidnapped. We didn't take better care of her in the garden." Cloud closed his eyes tightly and shook his head. He seemed to be lost in thought but he spoke up.

"Even if you were there with her, Sephiroth would've probably hurt you two and that wouldn't have been good." Riku nodded slowly and laid back onto his hands. So much had happen in so little time. Suddenly a crew member shouted as he fell into the water. It was an ambush. The silver haired boy stood up and brought out his knife. Cloud jumped up too and grabbed the knife out of the boy's hand. Riku gave him a surprised look as Cloud handed him a real knife. Riku smiled at him in gratitude as they both ran towards where the crew member fell.

Riku threw the lifesaver at him but he was too far and it wouldn't reach. Cloud then saw the reason for the attack. It was pirates. Cloud cursed them under his breath and knocked a few out with a kick. He didn't want to harm anybody but this was not the time. Riku jumped into the water to save the crew member...or members. More had fallen off. Riku tried saving all of them but it was too much work. Cloud threw more lifesavers down in the water while at the same time attacking the pirates. He tried preventing them from stealing the ship but there were too many and he had to get Riku and the others out of the water.

"Cloud! Forget about us, just get rid of them!" Riku shouted at him. Give up the ship and get them out of the water or try to get rid of all of them? Cloud had no choice but to abandon ship. They were way outnumbered and he had to get them to safety. He cut down the rope of a small boat and hopped in it. The pirates gave him a smirk and started driving the boat away. Cloud stared down at his feet in defeat. He can't even fend off pirates.

Everybody got onto the boat safely but they were all shivering from the cold. Cloud had to save them first.

"C'mon we're going back home," he stated.

"B-but C-cloud, we...we h-have to s-save K-kairi..." Riku shivered.

"You're all freezing! Do you think we have to chance to save Kairi?" Cloud snapped at him. Riku glared at nothing in particular. He felt like a failure. They didn't even make it halfway and they were ambushed. Cloud felt a bit bad for yelling at him but everything was going wrong. All he wanted was to save his kingdom, join kingdoms with Zack and they would rule together.

* * *

Sora made it out of the dark forest, with no dangers…yet. He was kind of hoping something would pop out at some time. He hadn't had a challenge in a long time. The prince cautiously walked a bit further, with his crew behind him. He saw a mysterious looking mansion up ahead.

"Hey, guys, follow close behind," he ordered. The men got uneasy as they followed the prince towards the mansion. Sora took a deep breath and pushed open the gates.

Sephiroth was expecting Cloud not the prince. Kairi was already muffled and she couldn't do anything. She tried to crawl out when he wasn't looking but of course, she didn't get too far. Sephiroth saw her attempting to escape and laughed at her silly attempt.

"Feisty aren't we?" He picked her up and went over to the closet. He then put a cloth over her nose and she soon fell into a deep sleep. She was a handful and the plan didn't even work properly. Oh well, at least Cloud got a warning. He will never forgive him for what he did. He glared at his sleeping daughter and walked out of the room. She looked too much like..._her._

Roxas was outside the door and he was supposed to watch if there were intruders coming. Seeing Sora his eyes narrowed a bit.

The brunet ran towards the door but was face to face with a blonde haired boy who looked strangely like himself. He raised his sword defensively and the two had a death-glare battle before Roxas stepped forward. Sora put his sword down a bit and spoke first.

"Move and you won't get hurt," he warned. Roxas just stared at him. Sora awkwardly stood there staring at him as well. _What's up with this kid? I just freaking threatened him. And that stare is making me feel a bit uncomfortable… _Sora cleared his throat and moved a bit forward. Roxas stepped forward at the same time.

"Why are you here?" he asked. Sora raised his eyebrow.

"We don't need to do this. Just move out of the way. I'm running out of time."

"Answer first." Sora was getting frustrated. Who knew what was happening to Kairi right now? He didn't really want to hurt anybody.

"I…I'm here to rescue the princess," he said. Roxas eyes lost its anger for a minute before turning back to the cold eyes Sora had first seen.

"I…" he started. He looked like he was about to say more but changed his mind. "Go. It's the first door on the left after the staircase."

Sora looked surprised that he told him that. He nodded stiffly as thanks and ran past him, his men following close behind.

Running up one of the staircases, he came face to face with a dusty old door. He faced the crew with a determined look on his face.

"Okay, I'm going in to rescue her. Keep watch out here," he commanded them.

"But what if there's danger in there?" one of the men asked in a worried tone.

"I'll take care of it." He turned the knob slowly and walked inside. His eyes wandered curiously around the dark room. He could barely see anything. Sora raised his hands in front of him to see if there was anything around him. The brunet nearly crashed into a table and several chairs. Finally his eyes adjusted to the dark and he saw an old broken down closet. He ran up to it and easily kicked it down.

Kairi was on the floor, tied up in ropes and mouth covered with a rag. She was passed out. _They probably drugged her_, Sora thought bitterly. He put an arm under her legs and another arm under her head and pulled her close. He ran out the door, expecting to see his crew there but there was no one in sight.

"They didn't just leave me did they?" he muttered under his breath. Kairi stirred a bit but didn't do anything else. Good, the brunet didn't exactly feel like explaining what was going on. Suddenly Sephiroth appeared in front of him but surprisingly unarmed.

"W-who're you?" Sora questioned. Sephiroth looked dangerous even if his face showed no emotion. His long silver hair swayed behind him and you can feel a dark aura emitting from him.

"I am the darkness, shying from everything that is light. Her father was supposed to be the one to rescue her so I'm a bit disappointed fate sent you instead. Tell this girl's father that I shall be waiting in the darkness for him and that he should keep an eye out for her. This isn't the only time she will be threatened," he smirked evilly before disappearing. Sora looked on, with many emotions displaying over his face, mainly confusion. At least he got out safely. He ran out and saw his men tied to the trees. He placed Kairi next to him and untied them all and then asked them what happened.

"That man, the silver haired one, he's pretty crazy ain't he?" one of the men said, rubbing his arm. "He just attacked us from no where but we didn't even see him comin'. And a few seconds later, we were tied to this tree."

"Do you have any idea who he is?" Sora asked. They all looked at each other and shook their heads.

"I doubt that's the last we'll see of him," Sora said. He glanced at Kairi and frowned. She was in danger just for being related to Cloud.

"C'mon let's head home. I'll reward you all for your bravery." The crew cheered and headed towards the ship. Sora, again, carried Kairi and followed after. Little did he know, Roxas followed closely behind.

Kairi stirred in her sleep and opened one violet blue eye. She sat up and looked around, dazed. She was in her room. As the fogginess went away she noticed a sleeping figure in a chair across the room. Sora was sleeping soundly and Kairi couldn't help but smile. He looked so peaceful but there was something else. He looked a bit pained. She couldn't figure out why but she decided not to dig deeper into it. Maybe the chair wasn't comfy enough. She couldn't remember anything that had happened. The redhead got off from her bed and walked over to Sora. Poking him twice, he moved around a bit.

"Sora? Sora," she nudged him again and he awoke with a start.

"What? Who? Sephiroth?" he said quickly.

"Sephiroth?" Kairi's eyes widened and suddenly remembered who Sephiroth was.

"H-he's the one that kidnapped me," Kairi moved back nearly fell back if Sora hadn't been there to catch her.

"Kai, it's going to be alright," Sora assured her.

"Why did he kidnap me?" she asked.

"It…it was a warning to your dad," he said.

"My dad? He hadn't heard from Sephiroth in years. He thought he was dead. And a warning for what, what does he want?" Kairi was so confused but she decided not to dwell on the thought of being kidnapped again.

"Don't worry, nothing will happen to you ever again," the prince stated. And Kairi trusted him.

* * *

Alright, trusting had nothing to do with annoyance.

Over the past few weeks, Sora had been overly protective.

He wouldn't let her go out by herself at all. He wouldn't even let her stay in the castle alone. There would always be escorts with her and by her side at all times. She didn't think he would take it this far.

When Sora was discussing with one of the guards, she quietly slipped outside into the garden. She knew he just wanted her to be safe but she wanted some alone time. She sat in the garden and looked up at the bright sky. It felt so serene. Suddenly someone grabbed her hand and pulled her up. The princess was about to scream when a hand covered her mouth. Her eyes widened in shock at the person in front of her. The hand removed itself and Kairi finally spoke.

"R-roxas?" she asked. The blonde nodded and reached out and held her tightly. She was surprised but hugged him back.

"How long have you been here?" she asked. There were a million other questions she had wanted to ask.

"Since you came back."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"I couldn't."

"I-I…" she couldn't really think straight. It was all so strange. The door flew open and Sora ran out but stopped abruptly when saw Kairi with that boy he had met when he went to rescue her that day.

"What…are you doing here?" Sora asked, suspiciously.

"It's alright Sora. He's a friend," Kairi reassured him. Sora still glared at him. Roxas stared back without saying much.

"A friend huh? Well he was working for that…that crazy insane guy. I doubt we can trust him any less," Sora said. Kairi rolled her eyes and smiled at Roxas.

"I was wondering if you're staying," Kairi asked him. Roxas frowned and shook his head.

"What? Why?"

"I just wanted to see if you were okay. I should leave now," the blonde stated. Kairi ran up to Sora and gave him her puppy dog look.

"Ugh, Kairi no. If I don't trust him, why would I invite him in?"

"Please, c'mon, he's really trustworthy," she said. She just looked so upset. Sora finally gave in and nodded. Kairi smiled and went over to Roxas to tell him the great news. Roxas just nodded but Kairi spotted the small smile he almost had.

Sora didn't know what it was but he felt…he didn't know what the feeling was. He just didn't like the fact that this guy was staying with them. And being so close to Kairi. Wait why did he care?

Hormones suck.

* * *

Cloud paced back and forth in his room. He had to get rid of Sephiroth. He's a danger to his family. Did he want money or what? Was he just insane in the head like he was all those years ago?

His phone rang but Cloud decided to ignore it. It was probably Claire. He can't talk to her right now. Especially not after what happened. He hadn't told her Sephiroth kidnapped Kairi because he didn't want to worry her. He knew he should've but he just didn't. Finally the phone stopped ringing and Cloud felt a bit guilty. He'll tell her _after_ Sephiroth is gone for good.

"Damn it all." Cloud grabbed his cloak and went out the door. He was going to track him down and destroy him.

Zack looked out the window and saw Cloud walking out. He sighed and shook his head. He turned to his wife and Aerith just frowned.

"He's going to look for Sephiroth. What do we do?"

"Cloud just needs some alone time. He'll figure it out," she answered sweetly. Zack nodded as he saw his best friend leave the gates.

"Hope he figures it out sooner…" he said to himself.

The phone rang and Aerith picked up. Her face brightened at the voice of whoever was on the other line. She gestured to Zack to come over.

"It's Claire," she told him and went back to talking with her. Zack looked surprised and wondered why she didn't call Cloud. He was sure Cloud didn't talk to her about the whole Sephiroth thing. They had both thought they would leave that in their past. Gone and never spoken of again. Aerith turned to him with a concerned look.

She certainly did not want to keep things from her old best friend but she knew Cloud should be the one to tell her. She covered the phone and spoke to her husband.

"What should we do? Claire said Cloud didn't pick up his phone and she's been worried sick about him. And she's asking how Kairi's doing. I can't lie to her!" Aerith whispered. Zack sighed and took the phone from his wife.

"Hello, Claire. How're you? Yes yes...Kairi's...fine. She had a bit understanding though. Cloud said he'll call you when he gets home...he's taking Kairi out for a walk. Alright, bye, take care." With that Zack hung up the phone.

"How'd you do that?" Aerith asked. "Y'know, not making her ask all those questions?"

"Years of practice on the phone with you, honey." He laughed as she hit him lightly on the head.

* * *

"Sora, stop following me," Kairi said, putting her hands on her hips.

"I'm not. Stop being so conceited. I'm obviously just going the same way," he stated. Kairi raised an eyebrow at him.

"You mean the bathroom?" she asked.

"Y-yeah, I'm going to the bathroom," he said going along with it.

"Alright then," Kairi mumbled. He was getting really annoying. She sort of missed the old teasing, jerky Sora. They walked beside each other silently until she spoke up.

"Sora, why are you being like this?" she asked.

"Being like what?"

"Like _this_. You're overly protective and it's been weeks since that incident. Besides Roxas is here. I'm sure he won't let anything bad happen to me."

Sora gritted his teeth and felt like punching this Roxas in the face. He didn't know why he was all worked up about it. He just crossed his arms and didn't say anything back. Kairi felt like she had said something wrong but brushed it away.

"Anyway, I didn't really need to go to the bathroom. I think I'll just rest in my room," she said quickly. Sora nodded and walked away. The princess felt a bit bad for whatever she said and was thinking about apologizing.

"What am I apologizing for?" she asked herself, angrily. She walked back to her room and decided to sleep this whole thing off.

Roxas was standing in front of her room and smiled at her. He was smiling more often these days. She was glad to see that. He looked more approachable smiling.

"Hey Roxas, what're you doing here? Don't you work with Olette now?" Olette was Sora's supervisor, organizing his schedule and whatnot. She was sweet but can be pretty strict.

"She gave me a break," Roxas said simply. Kairi laughed knowing he was lying as Olette gives no breaks at all. "And I wanted to see you." Kairi's face reddened and she awkwardly looked down at her feet.

"Thanks for checking up on me then. I'm doing great thought I can do without the Sora looking after me every 5 seconds." Roxas grimaced and nodded. Kairi wondered what his sudden disappointment was about.

"I guess I should be getting back to Olette. Have a good rest." He walked away before the princess could say anything. She went in her room confused and just plopped down on her bed. She then realized she was still in her dress and she shouldn't wrinkle it. Going through her closet she wore her pink nightdress that her mom had bought her. It was originally her mom's but she didn't like pink, suprising when her hair was pink. Makes Kairi wonder how her hair came out to be dark red, but she did have her parent's blue eyes. She laid down onto her pillow and fell asleep.

* * *

"Kai…hey sleepyhead. Wake up."

Kairi felt someone shaking her lightly and opened one tired eye. It was Sora…in her room….trying to wake her up. She shook him off and covered her head with a pillow. Her head hurt and she didn't feel like getting up.

"You're such a child," he mocked. He pulled off her blanket and sat on the edge of her bed. She was wearing a strapless simple pink nightdress. He thought she looked…cute in it. He knew he shouldn't have intruded in but he wanted to apologize for acting up. Sora wasn't one to apologize for simple things so this was pretty hard.

She got her head out of the pillow and glared at him. Her hair was a mess but it looked good naturally. Kind of like one of those models modeling in nightgowns. Sora turned red thinking about it. Kairi raised a perfect brow seeing him like that giggled.

"What are you doing here anyway?" she grumbled. Sora saw she was still grumpy about getting woken up.

"It's dinnertime," he said simply. "We all know what a fatass you are so you might as well suck the whole dinner table off."

Kairi's face turned red this time and pouted at him. Sora laughed at her face and in response got a pillow thrown at him.

"I don't eat that much!" she retorted. "Besides, my head hurts so I think I'll skip out dinner." Sora showed a flash of concern on his face but then asked calmly about it.

"You sure?" Kairi nodded and her head fell back onto the bed. Sora gave her back her pillow and walked out the door. Kairi sort of missed his presence. Sure he called her a fatass because of her eating habits but she couldn't help it. She had strange cravings for stuff. At least he was teasing her again. She was about to drift off into her thoughts and back to sleep but someone knocked on the door.

Sora walked in with a plate of food. She heard her stomach grumble and she blushed. Sora smirked and handed her the plate. Kairi graciously thanked him and stared at him.

"What?" he asked, looking away from her curious eyes. "Do you need me to feed you too?"

"I just wanted to ask why you did this."

"Give you your food? I give my dogs food all the time," he said laughing at her reaction.

"Whatever, it was nice," she said smiling at him. Sora nodded and laid back onto her bed beside her. Kairi ate her dinner quickly because the truth was she was hungry. Starving actually. Sora chuckled at her and closed his eyes. Kairi curiously looked at him and put the plate on the night table.

"Sora?" she asked. He opened one eye, looked at her, and then closed it again.

"Hm?" She took that as a go on sort of command.

"Are you okay with…you know…us getting married and all?" she asked. She would always redden whenever she thought about asking him this.

"At first I wasn't." Kairi waited for him to continue but he didn't.

"And now?"

"I…I guess I'm alright with it," he said. Kairi nodded. Sora opened his eyes and looked at her expression.

"Are…you okay with it?" he asked slowly. Kairi smiled and laid down next to him and closed her eyes.

"I guess I'm alright with it too."

"Alright then."

* * *

**A/N:** I wanted it to end on a happy note :D Soyeah they don't love each other yet, they're just okay with the fact that they're getting married together. Alright I made it sound stupid. Anyway, please R&R. Thanks to all the reviewers so far, each one makes me happy. And of course all the story alerts/favorites.


	5. Chocobo Riding and Swimming

**A/N:** I...don't really have much to say. Haha. This was basically some bonding time between Sora and Kairi :)

* * *

Previously

_"Sora?" she asked. He opened one eye, looked at her, and then closed it again._

_"Hm?" She took that as a go on sort of command._

_"Are you okay with…you know…us getting married and all?" she asked. She would always redden whenever she thought about asking him this._

_"At first I wasn't." Kairi waited for him to continue but he didn't._

_"And now?"_

_"I…I guess I'm alright with it," he said. Kairi nodded. Sora opened his eyes and looked at her expression._

_"Are…you okay with it?" he asked slowly. Kairi smiled and laid down next to him and closed her eyes._

_"I guess I'm alright with it too."_

_"Alright then."_

**Chapter 5- Chocobo Riding and Swimming**

Kairi opened one lazy eye and saw her cat Vanilla staring at her. Her cat meowed and jumped off her bed and onto the floor.

_What time is it? _

She then looked down and saw two arms holding her tightly. Her whole face turned pink as she turned a bit and saw Sora's head resting on her back. Kairi tried to slowly remove his arms before she blows up from embarrassment, but that only made him hold onto her tighter.

"Sora?" she whispered. He stirred a bit but didn't do much after that. Even though she was embarrassed, she couldn't help thinking this felt nice. Just napping in bed with someone holding you closely.

She didn't love Sora or anything like that. She just thought this was one nice nap. Suddenly, the arms moved a bit loose and Kairi took that opportunity to remove them from her stomach. One of Sora's blue eyes opened lazily as he looked around the room.

"What?" he said, dazed. Kairi laughed at how confused he looked.

"Hello your highness," she greeted. Sora looked at her face for a minute before jumping up.

"Oh my God, what happened last night!" Kairi's face turned even redder than before and hit his arm.

"Nothing happened, Sora. We just fell asleep. Thanks for jumping to conclusions." Sora nodded slowly and got out of the bed. _Besides...we're wearing our clothes_, Kairi added in her thoughts. She would never have said that aloud though, her face would've became as red as her hair.

"I just panicked. Sorry," he laughed.

"What time is it?" Kairi asked.

"I…don't know. I believe it's still early in the morning," he said looking out the window. Kairi got up from the bed and tried smoothing out her hair.

"Your hair looks fine, let's go outside," Sora grabbed her hand and opened the door. Riku was standing there with a fist raised as if about to knock.

"R-riku? What are you doing here?" Sora said patting his friend's arm nervously.

"I think I should be asking you do that," Riku said, smirking at his friend.

"Okay, we didn't do anything," Sora defended. "We just…fell asleep. Anyway, why are you at Kairi's room?"

"I wanted to ask Kairi if she'd like to go horseback riding with me today," he replied, smiling big. Kairi rolled her eyes at how they were talking about her like she wasn't there. They both continued to argue while she just stood there. Although she was alright with just handing holds with Sora.

_What am I saying? _she thought.

"Are you alright, Kai? Your face's red…" Sora pointed out. Kairi shook her head quickly.

"So, how 'bout it, Kairi? Horseback riding?" Riku asked. Kairi couldn't help it but she glanced at Sora. He had let go of her hand and didn't look at her.

"I was thinking about…spending the day with Sora today," she answered. The brunet looked at her surprised. Riku looked a bit disappointed but then smiled.

"Haha, alright you two lovebirds. Go on and do whatever lovebirds do. Take care of her, Sora," he patted the brunet's back, hard he might add, and walked down the hallway.

Kairi just looked at his retreating figure but Sora was looking at her. He finally spoke up.

"Um, why didn't you want to go horseback riding with Riku?" he asked.

"Did you want me to?" Sora shook his head and grabbed her hand again.

"C'mon, I have something to show you," he ran and Kairi had to run a bit faster than usual so she wouldn't fall.

She noticed that they were walking towards the Chocobo stable. Olette had gave her a tour of the castle the day after she arrived.

"Sora…are we going to…ride the Chocobos?" she asked slowly. Because she was nearly out of breath and she was a bit nervous.

"Yeah," he replied as he opened the gates.

"Is this because Riku wanted to take me horseback riding? We don't have to ride the Chocobos you know. We could…take a boat out into the lake or something," she said, her voice drifting off. She had never seen a Chocobo before but she had heard her dad talk about them.

"You can't possibly be scared," Sora scoffed. Kairi glared at him but her expression turned scared again when she saw the giant bird.

"I used to ride them all the time when I was younger," Sora excitedly said. Kairi nervously clutched his hand tighter.

"I don't know…I never rode them before. This is the first time I've actually seen a Chocobo," she admitted. The advisor had showed her the outside of the stable but not where the big birds were.

"Nah, it's alright. They're tame. Sort of." Sora brought one out of the stables. It was slightly smaller than the rest but it was still huge to her. He held a hand out to her.

"A-alright," she finally said. She took his hand and he helped her up onto one.

"Kweh," the Chocobo cooed. Kairi stroked its beak gently and it leaned onto her touch. Sora watched her touch the bird with such gentleness and he smiled.

"You ready?" he asked. She nodded hesitantly. He patted the Chocobo lightly and it started to walk. She held tightly onto the reins but soon she got the hang of it. Sora soon joined in next to her on a Chocobo.

"See? They're nice," he said, stroking his Chocobo's neck.

"I guess so. I still don't trust you though," she laughed.

"What? Why?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well…that one time you told me you threw my clothes into the swimming pool and when I went to check, you pushed me in."

"Okay, that was one time…"

"And that time where you said my soup had a special medicine in it and you better be glad Olette found that frog in there," she glared.

"It…was a joke. To welcome you into the castle," Sora smirked. "Besides it's not like I didn't wash it."

"Ugh, that was disgusting. And poor frog."

"Yeah yeah, whatever. You'll learn to trust me," Sora said. It sounded like a promise. They rode around for a few hours. Kairi even challenged him to a race.

"You sure you wanna do that?" Sora asked.

"What? Think you'll beat me?" Kairi went on ahead of him. Sora laughed and shook his head and followed after.

"No, I just think that since it's your first time riding these, you shouldn't race. You could get hurt," he stated.

"Are you concerned about my safety?" Kairi mocked, batting her eyelashes.

"Shut up," Sora grumbled. They stopped by a lake and Sora's eyes glinted.

"Hey, you wanna go for a swim?" Sora asked suddenly. Kairi's eyes widened.

"What?"

"I said you wanna go for a swim?" He didn't wait for her answer as he already took off his shirt. Kairi tried not to stare as she awkwardly ran a hand through her red locks. He was well built and slim and the redhead tried really hard not to gawk. He wasn't too muscular, just...perfect.

"I don't have…swim appropriate clothes," she said after a while. She mentally slapped herself. She must've sounded stupid. Sora's face turned a light pink.

"Uh…I guess you can still swim in that dress," he suggested.

"No, it's alright. You can go ahead and swim." He shrugged and took off his pants, leaving him only in his boxers, and jumped into the pond. He bounced back up and shook the water from his hair. She giggled as she had never seen his hair wet.

"I can't believe your hair's flat," she laughed. Sora glared at her as he touched his hair self consciously.

"It looks…cute," she smiled. Sora dipped his head in the water so he wouldn't have to reply to that. He just couldn't take compliments from her. He would either say something really stupid or just blush like an idiot. He started swimming some laps as to take his mind off things. He used to swim here all the time before but he started getting a lot more work now that he was seventeen. He didn't know how long he was swimming before Kairi called him.

"Sora! I'm hungry," she called out. Sora sighed and rolled his eyes, making sure she saw. She immediately read his mind.

"I'm not a fatass! It's past lunchtime!" Sora laughed and swam towards her.

"Yeah sure, fine." He was about to come out when Kairi asked him something important.

"What are you going to wear?" she asked. Sora was dripping wet and it would surely ruin his expensive clothes.

"Uh…" he stalled. Kairi smirked and flicked his head.

"I'm glad you thought this through. Now you'll have to walk all the way back wet and…" Kairi's words got caught as he pulled on her arm and flung her into the pond. She sputtered and jumped up and was completely soaked. He held onto her arm and laughed while she sent him a glare. She held onto Sora tightly and shivered.

"Ugh...thanks Sora, now I'm s-soaked," she stuttered. Sora stopped laughing and held onto her with a concerned look on his face.

"Are you cold?" he asked. He knew it was a stupid question but he was just so used to swimming in cold water that he didn't think about it too much.

"Not t-that much," she mumbled. She was already a bit heated up by being so close to a shirtless Sora.

"Let's get you out of here. Now at least we can be soaked and looking stupid together," he joked. Kairi wacked his head but didn't let go of him. He quickly got them out of the pond and sat down on the grass.

"We'll have to dry off a bit before riding the Chocobos. They don't like getting wet." Kairi shivered and nodded.

"I think…you'll need to take off your dress," he said embarrassingly.

"W-what?" she gasped out.

"If you don't want hypothermia!" he defended. Kairi nodded and was about to when he stopped her hand.

"Wait till you get behind that tree," he coughed awkwardly, face flushed, gesturing to the tree next to her. She blushed and walked behind the tree trunk. He grabbed his semi-dry jacket and decided to have her wear it. It was getting a bit cold, more colder than usual on Destiny Islands.

"Kay, Sora I'm done," she told him. He handed her the jacket and she quickly put it on. Sora rested his back onto the tree and closed his eyes. He hadn't had a nice swim in a while and it was a good stress reliever. Soon, when he gets back, he'll get a scolding and more work. Great. He was only seventeen and wanted some fun in his life.

"Kai?" She hadn't spoken since being handed the jacket. He crawled to the other side of the tree and saw her sleeping in his jacket. He smiled and tried carrying her on his back. It must've been boring not being able to swim and just watch.

He got onto the bigger Chocobo with her leaning on his back and grabbed the rein of the smaller one and headed back home.

* * *

After a few hours, Sora finally got back to the castle. He first brought the smaller Chocobo back into the stable and then decided to wake Kairi up.

"Kai? Kairi," he whispered to her. She stirred a bit and then mumbled something. "What was that?"

"Mom?" she mumbled. Sora felt a bit strange having Kairi calling him mom but he guessed she must miss her a lot even though she didn't show it much.

"Let's get you home," he sighed. After a lot of moving and twisting around he already got the Chocobo in and resting and Kairi still on his back.

The tired brunet carried her into her room and onto her bed. She looked so peaceful and tired. He decided to bring up her dinner again like before. Walking out slowly, he closed the door quietly and walked down the hall.

"Your highness!" he heard an all too familiar voice.

"What, Olette? I'm really tired so make it quick." He didn't mean to sound rude but he felt like he would collapse at any moment.

"You have a lot of work and papers to sign. This is no time to be out doing who knows what!" She was about to hand him papers but he pushed it back to her.

"Give it to me tomorrow. Please," he rubbed his eyes and turned away. She rolled her eyes and walked back where she came from, muttering under her breath. Sora stumbled through the hallway and almost forgot where the kitchen was.

"Hey, Sora," he heard someone call out to him. Sora turned around and saw just who he wanted to see.

"Roxas…hey nice to see you," Sora said half-heartedly. He was tired and just wanted to go to sleep after giving Kairi her dinner in case she wakes up and was hungry.

"I was wondering what Kairi likes," Roxas said with a monotone voice. Sora raised an eyebrow at him and crossed his arms.

"Why do you need to know?" he asked. Roxas heard the protectiveness in his voice but continued.

"I want to know what I should give her. As a present. It is her birthday in a few days," Roxas said. He almost smiled when he saw surprise in Sora's eyes.

"It's going to be her birthday!" Sora exclaimed. Suddenly he wasn't so tired. "It's my freaking fiancé's birthday and I didn't know…" He muttered to himself that last part.

"Hey, it's fine. And I'll just think of a present myself," Roxas said as he walked away from the confused brunet.

He was a bit nerved that Roxas knew Kairi's birthday and he didn't. They weren't that close…were they? Did Riku know? Sora shook that thought away and hurried to the kitchen. He quickly grabbed the plates of food that was saved for both of them and went back up to Kairi's room. Sora knocked on it to check if she was awake yet. When there wasn't a response, he opened it and went inside.

Placing the plates on the coffee table, he sat on her bed. He didn't feel very hungry. He knew Kairi had warmed up to him after being saved by him but he wondered if they didn't have that whole conflict, would they have been this close?

"S-sora?" Sora thought the redhead had woken up but she was talking in her sleep. "Sora…"

He reached out and held her hand. She seemed to be having a nightmare. She stopped moving and held his hand back. The prince couldn't help but smile. He remembered what she said earlier that day and an idea went in his head. He didn't feel like walking all the way to his room again so he laid down and made himself comfortable. He slept here before…a second time wouldn't hurt.

* * *

Cloud came home late that night and walked straight to his room. He didn't feel like bumping into anybody. Of course, someone had to. It was the silver haired friend of Sora's.

"Hey Cloud," Riku said, awkwardly. Cloud just opened the door to his room and went inside. Riku followed him right after but then stopped because he felt he was being room.

"What did you need?" Cloud tried not to sound impatient but he wasn't in the mood for a nice, smooth conversation. He had no lead as to where Sephiroth was. The address he gave before was no good as the place was deserted. No trace of him anywhere. Waste of a search.

"I wanted to apologize. For that day," Riku said, quietly. Cloud looked into the aquamarine eyes of the young man and he saw regret in them.

"Why would you apologize?" the blonde asked.

He hesitated for a bit before answering. "If I hadn't went, you probably would've found her. I was…weak and I'm sorry for slowing you down."

What Cloud did was unexpected to Riku. He started to laugh.

"Sir?" Riku said, confused. Cloud shook his head and walked up to him. He put a hand on his shoulder and replied to that.

"Riku, if you hadn't went, I would never have saved all that people that fell overboard. Even if you weren't there, we still would've been ambushed by pirates, you understand me? You're still young. You're what…eighteen?"

Riku's face brightened as he shook his head. "Seventeen."

"See, you're only seventeen and almost my height. Still many years to train and get stronger. Now, go on ahead. I need some rest." He patted the younger on the back and walked to his bed. Riku probably nodded a million times before speaking.

"Of course. Thanks sir, thank you," he bowed and walked out the room, closing the door slowly behind. He smiled to himself as he thought of when Cloud thought he was eighteen. He walked down the hallway, content.

* * *

In the morning, Sora opened his eyes and looked around. He turned around in the bed and saw Kairi wasn't there. Vanilla got out from her bed and looked at him, then yawned. The brunet thought about all the places the redhead could be. He stretched and got up from the bed. He didn't particularly like cats so he ignored the white feline as he opened the door and almost bumped into someone. He held the person by the shoulders so the plates of food they were holding didn't drop.

"Whoa, Kairi easy there," he said. Her face turned red as she nodded and backed away.

"Here. I got up early to prepare breakfast for you," she said. She was a bit embarrassed but she handed him the plate anyway. Sora's face were tinted with red as he took the plate from her hand. "Tifa helped me in the kitchen. Where were you headed to?"

"Oh, I was…" he was going to say he was going to look for her but he made something else up. "I was going to go back to my room and wash up."

"Alright then," Kairi walked past him and into her own room. She bent down to her cat and fed her some meat. Sora looked at her and down to his plate. She made breakfast for him?

"Why'd you make it for me?" he asked her. She didn't look up from her cat.

"Because I wanted to do something nice. And I needed to pay you back for bringing up my food twice."

He smiled to himself and then coughed. Kairi turned to him and got up slowly with a questioningly look.

"Thanks," he said, flashed her a smile, and walked out. Kairi wanted to say something but the words were caught in her mouth. Only after he left did she reply.

"You're welcome," she said, smiling as well.

* * *

**A/N: **I sort of wished Sora told Kairi he was going out to look for her but alas he's a fool...Please R&R(:

Thanks to all the reviews I've gotten so far. Each review makes me happy :D


	6. Dance Lesson

**A/N:** I had this sitting in my computer for a while but didn't know if I should upload it xD but here it is ;o I'm very inconsistent with the Chapter title in the beginning of each story, I noticed xD I'm probably not going to update too quickly on this story or Unexpected :( I'm currently working on Fuel To The Fire because that's the story that's interesting me the most right now.

* * *

**Chapter 6 Dance Lesson**

Kairi was content and finally adjusting to the castle. It didn't take her an hour each day to find her room anymore. Sora was certainly nicer. Well most of the time. He still teased her and it aggravated her to no end.

In the morning, Olette dragged her out to her office to explain some things Kairi had to learn before the actual wedding.

"You'll have to learn dancing, prepare your speech…" Olette dragged on as Kairi sat in her seat, impatiently. Sora had told her to meet him at the garden because he had something he wanted to show her and her attention was hardly focused on what the brunette was saying to her.

"Kairi!" Olette scolded. "Are you listening? This is important." Kairi heard Roxas snicker at her from his seat. She glared at him and then smiled apologetically to Olette.

"Sorry…" she apologized. "Wait…did you saying dancing?"

"Yes dancing. You have to dance at your wedding of course." Olette read down her list as Kairi imagined what it would be like dancing with Sora. She hoped she wouldn't make a fool out of herself. Roxas got up from his seat and whispered in Kairi's ear.

"Can I talk to you outside?" And just like that he disappeared out the door. Olette looked up from her list and looked after Roxas's figure confusingly.

"Where's he going?" she asked. Kairi stood up.

"Um, I'll go check," she said quickly as she followed him out. Olette groaned in frustration and sat down, crossing her arms and waited for them to return.

Kairi followed Roxas down the hallway and he suddenly stopped, making Kairi bump into him.

"So…what did you need to say?" Kairi said, glancing at the garden gates. She was so close to knowing the surprise.

"Are you alright with getting married?" he asked. His back was still turned to her. The princess was taken aback by that question as she opened her mouth but closed it again.

"Well are you?" The blonde turned around to her. Kairi bit her lip and played with the ring on her finger.

"I…don't know. I'm okay with it, if that's what you're asking…" Roxas shook his head and frowned.

"Are you in love with him?" he asked so boldly that Kairi started feeling a bit nervous.

"I…I'm not sure if I'm there yet but…Roxas why are you asking me these questions?" she asked, face turning red. These were personal and she didn't feel comfortable talking about her 'feelings.'

"No reason." That was his only response as he walked past her. Kairi turned around and saw he didn't go back into the room. She didn't feel like staying with Olette alone so she ran towards the garden.

She felt confused by Roxas's sudden outburst of questions. She saw Sora sitting on the bench with his hands behind his head. When she walked closer she saw he was napping. She sat down beside him and just waited until he woke up. She didn't want to wake him, not when he looked so peaceful and calm. He had a lot of work to do this past week and hadn't been getting much sleep.

She noticed the bags under his eyes and immediately felt saddened. The redhead was about to drift off as well but suddenly she heard the bushes rattle. She moved closer to Sora, as a reflex but who appeared from behind was so unexpected.

"M-mom?" she whispered. Claire Strife walked out from the bushes with her beautiful pink hair swaying behind her. The tears from Kairi's eyes threatened to fall as she ran towards her mom and wrapped her arms around her.

"I-I can't believe you're here. How did you…why did you…?" Kairi stumbled over her word as her mom laughed lightly.

"This young man brought me here. As an early birthday gift," she said as she stroked Kairi's head fondly. "Oh how I've missed you."

"Sora did this? I-I missed you too, Mom," Kairi said quietly, a tear running down her cheek. Lightning looked behind Kairi and saw that Sora was still sleeping. She smiled at him and then looked back down to Kairi.

"You have a very nice future ahead of you with him," Claire commented. Kairi pulled away to look into her mother's eyes.

"Um…yeah," Kairi said, blushing. Sora slowly opened his eyes and jumped up at the sight of Kairi reunited with her mom.

"Oh no! The surprise is ruined," Sora sighed. "Sorry, Kairi. I really wanted to lead you up to it."

"Sorry, Sora," Claire laughed. "Thank you so much for helping me get here."

"No problem. Mr. Valentine'll take care of things back at Radiant Garden."

"Thank you so much, Sora. This is the best gift anyone has ever given me," Kairi said. Lightning smiled adoringly at her daughter.

"I'd better go see your father. I'll be right back," Lightning said as she went inside the castle. Kairi had never stopped smiling. She then turned to Sora and ran forward.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in the crook of his neck.

"This is the best birthday ever, thank you thank you thank you," she whispered. Sora was surprised but he hugged her back. She felt so warm and he just wanted to hold her but then he had the sudden urge to ask.

"Did…Roxas give you anything?" he asked. Kairi pulled away and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Where did that come from?" Sora shrugged but still had a look of curiosity on his face.

"No…Roxas didn't," she replied slowly. Sora nodded and then ran past her.

"C'mon we have our first dancing lesson today!" he shouted before disappearing in the castle. Kairi shook her head amusedly before running inside.

Roxas wandered around in the hallways holding a small case. His face reddened at the thought of giving it to her. Suddenly, a body collided with his back as he fell over.

"Oh my gosh, Roxas! I'm so sorry!" Roxas recognized the voice as he turned his head. Kairi was on his back and quickly stood up and reached out her hand.

"I didn't see you there," she apologized as she tried fixing her hair.

"It's alright," he muttered. He was wondering if he should give it now.

"You'll never guess what Sora did!" Kairi exclaimed suddenly. Her face was radiant and she seemed like she was glowing. Roxas grimaced but tried being polite.

"What did he do?" he asked. He even tried smiling but it was a waste of an effort.

"He brought my mom out here. As an early birthday present," she said, crossing her arms behind her back. Roxas's face fell as he turned away.

"Oh…That's nice."

"Roxas, is something wrong?" she asked. He seemed out of it lately. Roxas shook his head quickly.

"No, nothing's wrong. I have to go." Before she could say another word, he ran down the hallway. Kairi stood there confused. She then went to find Olette before the brunette got angry.

"Kairi…hey," Sora said to her as she walked into the room. He stood up beside her and stared at his feet awkwardly. "You talked to Roxas?"

"Um…yeah. I did. Why?" she asked. Sora looked like he had a hard time speaking about Roxas.

"Did he give you anything? Did Riku?" he asked.

"Why do you need to know if they gave me anything?" she questioned.

"I'm a curious guy," he shrugged.

"Riku said he's going to buy me flowers even though I told him not to and Roxas just…I think he was about to but he was acting strange and just ran away."

"Oh…alright." Kairi was about to say something when Olette walked into the room.

"Alright let's get this over with," Olette said with a tired tone. Kairi felt a bit bad that she and Sora were always running off.

"Now Sora, put your hand on Kairi's waist."

"Put my hand where?"

"Her waist," Olette instructed strictly. Sora's face reddened but he tried keeping a straight face. He hesitantly placed his hand there.

"Kairi, hand on Sora's shoulder," Olette instructed. Kairi nodded and proceeded. It was pretty okay. Dancing, Kairi meant. Sora was already talented in dancing. Kairi needed some more work, seeing as she kept stepping on Sora's feet. He had winced a couple of times but he kept going. She apologized a million times during their break.

"Geez, clumsy, I'm pretty sure my feet are pretty red at this point," he said, looking down at his injured feet. Kairi blushed and bit her lip. "How'd you like it?"

"Dancing was fun," Kairi admitted. "I just can't believe we have to do it in front of so many people!"

"That's nothing," Sora said, drinking a bottle of water. "I can't believe you're nervous about the dancing." He laughed.

"I just don't want to make a fool of myself…" she pouted. Kairi drank from her own water bottle.

"Kairi, of course you'll make a fool of yourself," Sora said teasingly. Kairi glared at him but decided to ignore that. "Um…I know this is sudden but I'm glad I'm marrying you and not the other princess I was supposed to be betrothed to." Kairi nearly choked on her water.

"O-other princess?" she asked. She didn't know why she sounded so hurt. Sora turned to her and raised a perfect brow.

"Yeah," Sora said slowly, examining her face.

"What other princess?" Kairi asked.

"Um…well you know Namine? Her kingdom's right next to yours. I thought you knew…" he said slowly, as if regretting bringing this up.

"No, I actually didn't know. Why weren't you married to her?" she asked. She tried making her question sound as innocent as possible so he wouldn't hear what was hidden underneath those words.

"Because your dad was in trouble and my dad wanted to help him. Besides, I was only betrothed to Namine because my dad wanted me to get married quickly."

"Oh…" was all Kairi said. "Why does your dad want you to get married quickly?" Sora was surprised by that question but answered anyway.

"In case something happens to him so I could take over. He goes out to wars a lot," Sora muttered. Kairi felt guilty for asking because his face was overcome by sadness.

"Let's practice more," Kairi said, standing up and hoping to take his mind off things. The brunet looked at her for a second before nodding and standing up. She got the hang of the movements and patterns and the practice went along pretty well.

Roxas was standing outside the room, looking through a crack in the door. He glared at them both and stormed out of the castle. Sitting in the garden alone, he started to pluck some flowers from the ground.

"Nice to see you still here." Roxas quickly jumped to his feet and took out his sword.

"Still talented are you, my boy?" Roxas lowered his sword when he saw who was standing behind the tree. Silver hair swayed behind the intruder.

"S-sephiroth…" the blonde spoke out.

"You didn't think I'd let you off the hook that easily, did you?" he said, holding Roxas's chin. Roxas shook him off and backed away from him.

"What do you want? You don't want to hurt Kairi do you?" Roxas said.

"No of course not. I don't need her. I just wanted to settle a past feud with her father."

"What do you still need me for?" Roxas said slowly. Sephiroth moved closer and put a hand on his weapon. He had a dangerous glint in his eyes.

"I need you to just…lure him out. Back to his castle of Radiant Garden," he said quietly.

"I don't work for you anymore!" Roxas yelled. He held his sword at Sephiroth's neck but the elder just smiled deviously.

"You owe me. I saved you," Sephiroth drawled out. Roxas's hand wavered a bit but he still kept the weapon up.

"I already paid you back by working for you on the ship," Roxas said.

"Oh really?" Sephiroth came closer until the sword touched his neck. "Well then I supposed you won't care if I hurt your little princess?"

"You wouldn't dare," Roxas threatened. It was a threat but it came out more like a plea.

"Would I?" he asked. He gave him one last smirk and then disappeared into the darkness. Roxas dropped his sword and quickly ran inside the castle.

His heart was pounding out of his chest as he searched for Kairi. He looked into the room she and Sora were previously in but they were nowhere to be found. He ran to her room and knocked on the door.

A few seconds later and Kairi opened it. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Roxas, are you alright?" she asked. He nodded and looked inside. Sora was sitting cross-legged on the floor with Vanilla.

"What's he doing here?" Roxas asked. Kairi noticed his eyes were dark and empty, just like on the ship when she had first met him.

"He just wanted to…stay for a bit," Kairi said. She was a bit confused as to why he was acting like this. "What did you need?"

"Please stay in the castle. It's not safe for you outside. Stay where there are people there to protect you." And with that, he walked away.

"What was that about?" Sora asked. Vanilla was on his head, playing with strands of his brown hair.

"I don't know…" Kairi whispered, confused. She turned around and laughed at the sight of her cat on his head. Sora blushed a bit and took Vanilla off his head.

"I think she's starting to like you," Kairi said, bending down.

"Congrats to me," Sora mumbled as Vanilla bit his finger. "Ow!" he winced.

"Hey, Sora. Do you think it's alright for people to get married without being in love?" Kairi asked.

"Where did that come from?" When Kairi shrugged, he answered. "No…I don't think so." The redhead nodded but Sora continued on.

"I do believe that they can fall in love though." The redhead's face turned bright pink as she fumbled with her hands, embarrassingly.

She looked up and saw Sora looking intently into her eyes. He started to lean in and she felt herself doing the same. _Is this it?_ Suddenly, Vanilla jumped on Sora's head again.

"Agh!" he groaned as the cat tugged on a lock. Kairi giggled and took Vanilla off.

"She's a handful isn't she?" she said, petting the white cat. Although she was a teeny bit disappointed at the interruption. Sora gave her a genuine smile and she felt her heart leap. He then stood up and held out a hand.

"Let's get dinner," he said. The princess nodded and held his hand as he pulled her up. He walked in front of her with his hands behind his head as Kairi walked slowly behind. "_I do believe they can fall in love though…"_

When he said that, she felt suddenly very hot and couldn't breath. And what was with all that leaning in? If Vanilla hadn't interrupted…Kairi touched her lips with her fingers. Sora suddenly turned around and Kairi's hand dropped in a second.

"C'mon, how slow are you?" Sora teased. He ran down the hallway with Kairi giving chase.

"I'm faster than you!" she said back. They both ran down the hallway like small children and didn't stop until they reached the dining hall.

The wedding wasn't that far off but it wasn't that close either. There was still time left and Kairi was going to use it well.

* * *

**A/N**: Ugh I kinda wish I didn't add such a storyline in there cause I guess now I have to add in some sort of battle scene haha. Please R&R(:


End file.
